Nuggets-Celtics Preview

By JEFF BARTLPosted Dec 08 2010 1:42AM

Rajon Rondo took himself out of the lineup just before the Boston Celtics' most recent victory. Despite the uncertainty surrounding their star point guard, the Celtics look to extend their winning streak while delaying a milestone for Denver Nuggets coach George Karl.

Boston hosts Denver on Wednesday night hoping Rondo can overcome the hamstring and foot injuries that kept him out Sunday.

Rondo sat out three straight games Nov. 21-24 with a strained hamstring, but he returned for the following four games and had at least 10 assists in each - including 19 on Friday in a 104-92 win against Chicago.

He warmed up Sunday at New Jersey, but decided he couldn't play.

"It was literally about two seconds before the game was going to start," coach Doc Rivers said. "I usually don't like that. It was really a last-second cancellation."

Rondo's absence didn't seem to bother the Celtics (16-4), who extended their season-high winning streak to seven games with a 100-75 victory.

Nate Robinson made his fourth start in Rondo's place and scored a game-high 21 points with six assists. If Rondo is forced to rest Wednesday, Robinson likely will get the nod again.

"I just go about things the same way," Robinson said. "I just play the same way as if I was coming off the bench."

Shaquille O'Neal's status is also uncertain for the Celtics after he left Sunday's game with a sore right calf.

Paul Pierce scored eight points against the Nets, marking only the second time in his last 41 games he hasn't scored in double figures. However, Pierce has averaged 25.7 points in 22 career games against Denver, which hopes to earn Karl his 1,000th NBA head coaching victory.

The Nuggets (13-7) failed in their first attempt Tuesday in a 100-98 loss at Charlotte, which snapped Denver's seven-game winning streak. Chauncey Billups scored 25 points, but he missed the potential game-tying shot as time expired.

"It would have been something I'd have remembered if I won my 1,000th here," said Karl, who played his college basketball at North Carolina. "But hopefully we'll get it on this trip."

Boston is the second stop on a four-game road trip the Nuggets hope doesn't resemble their previous contests away from home. Denver is 3-6 on the road - including five losses in the last six - compared to 10-1 at the Pepsi Center.

"I think defensively our urgency was not where it should be to win when you're playing on the road," Karl said Tuesday.

Billups, selected No. 3 overall by the Celtics in 1997, has averaged 17.8 points in 28 career games against his former team, which traded him during his rookie season.

Carmelo Anthony has averaged 18.8 points in four games since leaving with an illness early in Denver's 138-133 win against Phoenix on Nov. 28. Anthony hasn't missed any more time following that contest, but he averaged 25.2 in the 15 games prior to the illness.

This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season after they split the pair in 2009-10. The Nuggets have lost 17 of the last 20 meetings in Boston, where the Celtics are 9-1 this season.

Copyright 2010 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Karl stuck on 999 wins; Celtics beat Denver 105-89

By JIMMY GOLENPosted Dec 08 2010 11:16PM

BOSTON (AP) Doc Rivers decided not to tell his team that Carmelo Anthony was scratched until after the Celtics had already prepared to face the Denver Nuggets star.

He learned that lesson from Oklahoma City and Kevin Durant.

"He really didn't want to tell us that Carmelo wasn't playing," Celtics forward Paul Pierce said after Boston beat the Nuggets 105-89 on Wednesday night. "I think he waited to the very last second."

Ray Allen scored 28 points to help the Celtics take advantage of Anthony's injury and win their eighth straight game. The loss left Nuggets coach George Karl stuck on 999 wins; his next chance to reach 1,000 comes Friday at Toronto.

Kevin Garnett had 17 points and nine rebounds, and Rajon Rondo added 13 assists for Boston. Paul Pierce scored 17 and Glen "Big Baby" Davis, who had been ill during the week, had 16 points.

Reserve guard Ty Lawson scored 24 for Denver, and Arron Afflalo added 16 points. Gary Forbes, who started in place of Anthony, had five points and zero rebounds in 19 minutes.

Anthony, the No. 10 scorer in the NBA this season at 22.8 points per game, was scratched just before tip-off because of inflammation in his right knee. He is day-to-day.

"I'm somewhat surprised by it," Karl said. "I kind of knew there was a chance he wouldn't go (at) about 15 minutes before the game."

It was the third time in 11 home games that the Celtics faced an opponent without its star. John Wall also missed the Washington Wizards' game in Boston, and the Thunder were without Durant, the NBA's leading scorer, when they visited on Nov. 19.

The Celtics lost that one. So Rivers tried to withhold the information, thinking it might keep his players focused.

"Yeah, they knew I was lying," he said. "The last time, it didn't work. So we tried something different."

The Celtics got all their sick and injured players back, with Rondo returning after missing Sunday's game against New Jersey, Davis making it back from an illness and Shaquille O'Neal shaking off a sore calf. Nate Robinson missed practice Tuesday for personal reasons, leaving Boston with just eight players at the workout.

But the Celtics hit their first seven shots and opened a 16-4 lead before they missed one, on Garnett's fallaway with 8:04 left in the first. The lead was 30-11 before the Nuggets began to chip away.

They outscored Boston 29-12 over the bulk of the second quarter - Lawson had 11 in the period - to pull within 51-50. But the Celtics pulled away again, getting a long 2-pointer from Allen and a pair of free throws from Pierce, and when Allen hit a layup in the closing seconds it was 59-52.

The Nuggets never got within one possession after that.

Karl's next victory would make him the seventh NBA coach to win 1,000 games. Only Phil Jackson, Pat Riley and Jerry Sloan did it in fewer games; only Riley and Lenny Wilkens hit the milestone at a younger age than the 59-year-old Karl.

A brewing altercation was quickly broken up under the Celtics' basket with 2:32 to play after Nene appeared to head-butt Davis following some jawing in the lane. The players were given matching technical fouls.

NOTES: The Celtics just missed shooting over 70 percent in the first quarter, finishing 13 for 19 (68 percent). ... Nuggets reserves Lawson and J.R. Smith had 13 and 12 points, respectively, in the first half. ... Denver, which lost 100-98 on Tuesday night to Charlotte, is 3-2 in the second game of a back-to-back. ... The Nuggets fell to 1-6 - and 0-6 on the road - when scoring fewer than 100 points. ... Allen made his first three 3-pointers and scored 12 in the opening period. ... Denver F/C Chris Andersen is not with the club during the four-game trip because of a fractured bone in his lower back.

Copyright 2010 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Nuggets-Celtics notebook

By Brian Robb, for NBA.comPosted Wednesday December 8, 2010 10:51PM

THE FACTS: The Boston Celtics cruised to their eighth straight victory with a 105-89 victory over the shorthanded Denver Nuggets. Ray Allen turned in a terrific shooting night, hitting nine of his 14 shots for 28 points, while Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce each chipped in with 17 points. The Nuggets played without leading scorer Carmelo Anthony, who was a late scratch with an inflamed right knee. Ty Lawson led Denver in his absence with a season-high 24 points off the bench.

QUOTABLE: "I just believe people expect it from me. I've done this many times. I do my job every night. The credit for me is raising a championship at the end."-- Ray Allen on his exceptional play falling under the radar

THE STAT: Despite shooting 63 percent in the first 24 minutes, Boston led by just seven points at halftime, squandering much of their 19-point first quarter lead. Lawson and J.R. Smith led the charge, combining for 25 points in the first half.

TURNING POINT: After some subpar play in the second quarter which enabled the Nuggets to get back in the game, Celtic reserves Glen Davis and Nate Robinson stepped up in the middle of the final frame, scoring eight consecutive points for Boston to extend the team's lead to 20.

QUOTABLE II: "I think the majority of the mindset is defense. I can really truthfully say that, that's been the premise of what we want to go out and do. And we've been effective in not just 24 minutes but for 47. I think Doc put us back into that mentality."-- Kevin Garnett on his team's defensive effort

HOT: Allen came out firing, hitting four of his first six shots, including three from downtown, resulting in 12 early points for the veteran. The scoring outburst helped Boston opened up a double-digit lead just three minutes after the opening tip.

NOT: Nuggets point guard Chauncey Billups continued his struggles, putting together one of his worst outings of the year. The 13-year pro hit just two of his ten field goals, and missed both his free throw attempts to score just five points on the evening. He is shooting a career low 35.8 percent from the field through 21 games.

QUOTABLE III: "I went up to him as a man, and what I said is that I had nothing personal toward him nor any other cancer patient that are out there struggling with life situations. I wanted to say that to him, man to man." -- Kevin Garnett on his conversation with George Karl, a cancer survivor, after the game

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Garnett continued to regain his pre-knee surgery form, hitting eight of his nine shots while grabbing nine rebounds to fall one board short of his 10th double-double of the year.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch took in the game while sitting courtside at TD Garden.

ROOKIE WATCH: Nuggets forward Gary Forbes earned the start in place of the injured Anthony. The UMass product posted four points in 15 minutes of action. Celtics center Semih Erden made the most of his limited playing time hitting both of his shots in 12 minutes off the bench.

NOTABLE: Anthony is considered day-to-day. Rondo left the game briefly in the third quarter after he aggravated his tender right hamstring. He returned moments later, after stretching it out on the sideline. Both teams combined for just nine offensive rebounds. Denver scored only 28 points in the paint. Davis drew three charges, bringing his season total up to 24 taken on the year. The LSU product also finished with 16 points. Nene drew a technical foul in the fourth quarter after a dustup with Davis. Karl fell short of his 1,000th career win for the second straight night.